Robbie Williams is a monkey in the musical biopic

How do you top “The Greatest Showman”? Well, for writer/director Michael Gracey, that meant turning to the monkeys – literally.

Gracey is directing the musical biopic “Better Man” based on British pop star Robbie Williams. The only catch? Williams is portrayed by a computer-generated monkey. The Paramount film is being touted as an “extraordinary visual spectacle” that embodies Gracey’s “expansive vision.” Gracey hired Weta FX and Jonno Davies in the motion capture suit to bring Williams to life as the monkey.

Jonno Davies voices the monkey as Williams. Steve Pemberton and Raechelle Banno also appear in the feature.

Gracey co-wrote the film along with Oliver Cole and Simon Gleeson. “Better Man” debuted at the 2024 Telluride Film Festival, where IndieWire critic David Ehrlich wrote in the review that Williams’ portrayal of a computer-generated ape made “Better Man” a better film.

“You will see a monkey bleaching his hair. You will experience a monkey party with Oasis. “You will see a monkey drink unreasonable amounts of cocaine, stick a heroin needle between the fur on his arm, and drive headfirst into oncoming traffic while screaming a pop song at the top of his monkey lungs,” Ehrlich wrote. “Before the film screened at the Telluride, (writer/director) Gracey told the audience that he was simply hoping to take Williams' self-image as a performing ape literally, but the film itself offers no direct explanation, in large part because of all the others Characters don't see Williams the way he sees himself: undeveloped.”

The review continued: “One never forgets that Williams is different and at the mercy of his own wounded ambition; You can't help but stare at him like the star he is, share in his embarrassment when he becomes the most problematic member of the boy band Take That, or appreciate his instinct that a normal life was never in sight. At the end of the film you still see him as a human being, even though Gracey never dares to drop the role.”

And “Better Man” isn’t the only alternative version of the standard musical biography: Pharrell Williams opted to transform into a LEGO figure for his life story “Piece by Piece.”

“Better Man” premieres in select Paramount theaters on December 25th. Check out the teaser below.